Used oil - New Jersey

Scope

Under many circumstances, used oil is a hazardous waste and must be managed as such if it is to be disposed of. However, EPA’s used oil management program allows the handling of used oil under less stringent standards as long as it is managed according to the regulations and the oil is ultimately sent to a recycler, recycled, or burned for fuel.

Regulatory citations

• NJAC 7:26A-6.1-6.5

Key definitions

• Used oil: Any oil that has been refined from crude oil, or any synthetic oil, that has been used and as a result of such use, is contaminated by physical or chemical impurities, or unused oil that is contaminated by physical or chemical impurities through storage or handling and is determined to be a solid waste by the generator.
• Used oil generator: Any person, by site, whose act or process produces used oil or whose act first causes used oil to become subject to regulation.
• Used oil processor or re-refiner: A facility that processes used oil.
• Used oil transfer facility: Any transportation related facility including loading docks, parking areas, storage areas, and other areas where shipments of used oil are held for more than 24 hours during the normal course of transportation and not longer than 35 days. Transfer facilities that store used oil for more than 35 days are subject to regulation under N.J.A.C. 7:26A-6.7 as used oil processors, except that these facilities are not subject to the requirements of N.J.A.C. 7:26A-6.7(a)2vi, unless used oil processing is also performed.
• Used oil transporter: Any person who transports used oil, any person who collects used oil from more than one generator and transports the collected oil, and owners and operators of used oil transfer facilities. Used oil transporters may consolidate or aggregate loads of used oil for purposes of transportation but, with the following exception, may not process used oil. Transporters may conduct incidental processing operations that occur in the normal course of used oil transportation (for example, settling and water separation), but that are not designed to produce (or make more amenable for production of) used oil derived products or used oil fuel.

Summary of requirements

New Jersey state requirements regarding used oil management include some regulatory information beyond the federal requirements. A summary of the additional requirements includes the following:

• Off-specification used oil fuel shall not be burned for energy recovery except in the devices specified in NJAC 7:26A-6.3, and provided a “Permit to Construct, Install or Alter Control Apparatus or Equipment and Certificate to Operate Control Apparatus or Equipment” or other authorization is obtained for such device prior to burning.
• Generators may burn on-specification used oil in used oil-fired space heaters provided that:
  1. The heater burns only used oil that the owner or operator generates or used oil received from household do-it-yourself used oil generators;
  2. The heater is designed to have a maximum capacity of not more than 0.5 million BTU per hour;
  3. The combustion gases from the heater are vented to the ambient air; and
  4. The generator obtains a “Permit to Construct, Install or Alter Control Apparatus or Equipment and Certificate to Operate Control Apparatus or Equipment” or other required authorization in accordance with N.J.A.C. 7:27-8, 20, or 22 prior to operating the space heater.
• Used oil transporters and transfer facilities must comply with the notification requirements at NJAC 7:26A-6.6(c).
• Used oil processors and re-refiners must comply with the notification requirements at NJAC 7:26A-6.7(b) and the tracking standards at 7:26A-6.7 (g).